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Chapter 25 is out on my patreon!!!!!
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After breakfast, the trio—plus one Echo—left the hotel.
Playing the perfect host, Lupa enthusiastically led them through the exotic, bustling streets of the Seven Hills. She pointed out various local specialties and landmarks, her voice brimming with lively pride.
Rover and Cartethyia followed close behind. Watching Lupa bound ahead like a happy little wolf pup, frequently turning back to wave at them, Rover wore a faint smile. His gaze tracked her every move, filled with an obvious, unapologetic tenderness.
Cartethyia walked quietly, observing the unfamiliar city—and observing the two people in front of her.
She saw Lupa naturally link her arm through Rover's, playfully pulling him toward a stall to try some local street food. She saw Rover dutifully lean down to take a bite, giving Lupa an approving nod.
This scene only sharpened the nagging feeling of "wrongness" in Cartethyia's chest.
She silently averted her gaze, forcing her attention onto the unique architecture lining the streets. Yet, that inexplicable, bitter pang in her heart refused to dissipate.
Abu, on the other hand, was having the time of its life. Despite having just demolished a massive breakfast, the little Echo zipped from food stall to food stall, stuffing its face until its cheeks bulged with grease. Whatever minor suspicions it had harbored at the breakfast table had long been thrown out the window.
After a short but fulfilling tour, the group took a cable car down to the harbor.
Standing on the pier, the salty sea breeze swept past them, whipping up Lupa's vibrant red hair and Cartethyia's wheat-blonde locks.
While waiting for the ship's crew to confirm their final departure time, Rover sharply noticed that Cartethyia had vanished from his side.
At some point, she had slipped away to sit alone at an outdoor patio table belonging to a nearby harbor restaurant. A plate of vibrant green salad sat in front of her. She was taking small, deliberate bites, her expression one of deep, absolute satisfaction.
Something stirred in Rover's heart. He leaned in and whispered, "I'll be right back," to Lupa before quietly walking over.
Stepping up right behind Cartethyia, he leaned down slightly and spoke up with a sudden, teasing tone. "Cartethyia, what are you eating? You didn't even save a bite for me!"
Cartethyia jumped, snapping her head around. Seeing Rover, she blinked her icy blue eyes and let out a tiny, visible sigh of relief.
She looked down at her nearly empty plate and flushed with a bit of embarrassment. "Ah, I'm already finished."
"My apologies. I wasn't quite full from breakfast, so I ordered another portion here. I can borrow the owner's kitchen and make you a plate right now."
"Haha, it's fine, Cartethyia. I was just joking." Rover chuckled. Seeing the blonde knight so easily flustered, he couldn't help but find her incredibly endearing.
"Mm... alright." Cartethyia reached up, scratching her cheek with a finger. A moment later, she gently clasped her hands together and closed her eyes, seemingly savoring the aftertaste. "The Greenbranch Laurel Salad is just as delicious as it used to be. It was worth practicing so I could make it for myself. Crisp, sweet, and refreshing."
She opened her eyes. Seeing Rover still standing there, quietly watching her with a warm smile, she felt a flare of shyness. She gently patted the empty seat next to her. "Please, sit. Let us talk for a while."
Rover naturally obliged, taking the seat. Looking at the color that had returned to her face, he asked softly, "Speaking of which... has your sense of taste fully recovered?"
"Yes." Cartethyia nodded, her eyes bright and resolute. "And so... I was thinking. I want to fulfill the new goals you set for me. To eat the food I want to eat, to go to the places I want to go, and to see the people I want to see. Being a wandering knight... that is my long-term goal."
As she spoke, she stood up. Almost instinctively, she materialized her knight's longsword, performing a few practiced, elegant swings in the air before dismissing it. The movements were fluid and graceful, carrying just a hint of youthful showing off.
She turned back to Rover, clasping her hands behind her back and tilting her chin up slightly. "A wish list is something that must be completed one item at a time, after all."
Rover watched her. This rare, playful display of youthful innocence—one that actually matched her apparent age—deepened the smile in his eyes. "It sounds like the first wish has already been fulfilled."
"The third one has been fulfilled as well." Cartethyia's tone dropped slightly, though it held no real sorrow—only a calm sense of closure. "Though it was unexpected... It concerns my adoptive parents and their child. Perhaps it was a trick of fate. I found no trace of them after they moved away from Laguna, but I unexpectedly found them right here in the Seven Hills."
Cartethyia paused, her voice growing even softer. "It's just that... they no longer recognize me. The reality that 'I was their daughter'... was nothing more than a fabricated memory forced upon them by the Threnodian. With the Threnodian sealed within the tower, that memory vanished as well."
A look of deep concern crossed Rover's face. "Cartethyia..."
"It's okay." Cartethyia shook her head, looking back at him. A faint, genuinely authentic smile graced her lips. "Truly, in this moment, I feel incredibly blessed. If they had lost their lives all those years ago due to the Convent's persecution, the agony would have broken me. But now? This is the best possible ending. Twenty years of grieving the loss of a child... I would never want them to suffer such pain on my behalf."
"Besides," she continued, her voice brightening once more as she skipped over to a nearby set of stone steps, practically bouncing like an ordinary young girl bursting with energy. "Because of this strange twist of fate, all three of my wishes have been fulfilled. I can cook and taste the Greenbranch Laurel Salad I've missed so much. I have an entire lifetime ahead of me to explore the world and see every landscape I've ever wanted to visit. And as for the person I wanted to see..."
She stopped her skipping. Standing slightly elevated on the step, she turned around to face the Righteous One who had saved her life.
The sea breeze wildly tousled her wheat-blonde hair. She reached up, gently tucking a stray lock behind her ear. It was a simple, incredibly natural gesture that radiated the pure, unadulterated charm of a young maiden.
Her gaze was crystal clear and profoundly sincere as she looked deep into Rover's eyes. "...Because of this unexpected journey, I was able to reunite with them in another city-state. The winds of Rinascita always seem to bring me tales of the Seven Hills."
Her gaze flicked briefly past Rover, catching sight of Lupa waiting in the distance, before settling firmly back onto his face. Her smile was warm and utterly content. "And for all of this, I am deeply satisfied."
In every smile, every subtle movement, the maiden knight poured out a lifetime of devotion and unspoken affection for her Righteous One. It was all laid bare in the silent intersection of their gazes beneath the howling sea breeze.
Only now, mixed into that profound affection, was a faint, newly awakened thread of loss—the quiet realization that there was already someone else standing faithfully by his side.
The loud blast of a ship's horn echoed from the distance, signaling the vessel was ready to depart.
Lupa jogged over, a bright smile on her face. "The ship's ready! Time to go!"
Cartethyia instantly reeled in her emotions, her expression snapping back to its usual cold, serious demeanor. She gave a firm nod.
The group walked toward the boarding gate. Lupa stopped at the edge of the pier. As she watched Rover and Cartethyia prepare to board, her brilliant smile dimmed slightly, replaced by a lingering reluctance to let him go.
"Come back soon, partner," she said, stepping forward. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was perfectly clear.
"I'll be back the second this is handled," Rover promised. His gaze locked onto her face for a moment, ultimately softening into a deeply reassuring look.
Standing to the side, Cartethyia placed a hand over her heart and bowed slightly, executing a flawless, standard knight's salute. "Thank you for your hospitality these past few days, Miss Lupa. Take care."
They boarded. The ship set sail.
The silhouette of the Seven Hills steadily shrank in the distance, and the red-haired figure on the pier faded into a tiny red dot before disappearing entirely.
Cartethyia stood at the stern of the ship, staring back the way they came for a very, very long time. The sea breeze whipped her golden hair around her. Within her icy blue eyes swirled an unprecedented storm of confusion, disorientation, and finally, a quiet sigh of realization.
She had finally pinpointed exactly what that feeling of "wrongness" was.
The target of her absolute loyalty, the Righteous One she had sworn her life to follow... was no longer a back she could gaze upon all by herself.
But why... does my chest feel so... tight?
This sudden epiphany plunged the maiden knight—who had never once navigated such complicated emotional waters—into a profound state of bewilderment and a quiet, agonizing sense of loss.
The ship cleaved through the azure sea, charting a course toward the Black Shores, and into an unknown tomorrow.
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